LifeBook Author Derek Abbott Visits The Office

With Christmas and New Year behind us

With Christmas and New Year behind us, what better way to start off January than with a visit from one of our very early LifeBook authors? Derek Abbott and his wife, Ruth, visited the office for a catch up, a cuppa and to sign a copy of his new LifeBook for us. It was a lovely chance to meet one of our former LifeBook authors.

2012 PPC compared to 2018 Mohawk paper and linen-bound

LifeBook has been operating since 2012, when our books were very different from how they are today. In those early days, we printed and bound our authors’ stories into PPC-style books. Whilst this produced a unique and precious heirloom, we wanted to do something different for the final book and therefore changed the style of finish; we want our books to really stand out. Now, when creating our authors’ autobiographies, our bookbinders use Mohawk archival paper to produce hard-backed, linen-bound copies, with an embossed name and title on the cover and spine, as well as a customised dust.

“The Facilitator”

Derek’s original book had been well-received by friends and family, but when he requested a second print run, we thought it was an ideal opportunity to typeset it in our new style. With this new typeset came a chance to revisit the stories that helped Derek to earn the nickname, ‘Mr Facilitator’.

Within the LifeBook are Derek’s memories of growing up during the Second World War, his military service and his successful career in the independent grocery sector. Also included are the stories surrounding his extensive charitable work, a point that Derek had never considered until he re-read his stories when signing off the print run.

We had enjoyed working with Mr Facilitator back in 2012 and this was repeated once more as we prepared the latest edition of his LifeBook. We now hope that the new-look books will continue to be enjoyed by Derek and his family for years to come. Thank you, Derek!